Code: 16B

Chapter Twenty-Five

Twenty-Five

    I didn’t remember seeing anything out of the ordinary in my dreams. In fact, I think I didn’t have any dreams, which is kind of strange. I guess I’ve grown used to having them. So, when I heard a familiar beeping noise, it caused my eyes to flutter open. I rolled over to push off the alarm clock on my nightstand, still feeling sleepy when I finally hit the stupid button and shut that insistent noise off.

    Then, like an electric shock, I find myself upright and out of bed. I take one quick look around, and I couldn’t help but smile. I am now back in my own room…or am I? Of course, everything looks the same, I still have my Taylor Lautner poster on my wall, my desk is tidy and neat, and everything that’s been placed on my dresser is exactly where I left it last time I checked. Still, I tiptoed towards the door, and open it just a crack. It is the same hallway that I’ve always walked through in the morning, but just to make sure, I head downstairs and into the kitchen. And when my bare feet touched the linoleum tile floor, and my eyes take in everything, I’ve realized that I’m finally home. And I couldn’t hold back the tears I’ve held back as I got back to my normal routine.

    When I arrived at Wunsche, everything was the same, it was almost as if I hadn’t left. My homework was already completed and turned in, and I managed to get good grades because of said completed homework.

    It was when I got to Westfield for my drama class, where things began to finally make sense. After I arrived, I noticed that Missy didn’t enter the classroom.

    “Where’s Missy?” I blurted, the worry for my BFF began to show in my voice.

    “She’s sick.” I hear Amanda M said, sitting in her usual seat next to Liana. I just stared at her with a huge question mark on my face. “Missy texted me saying that she wasn’t feeling well, and that she won’t come to rehearsal today.” Amanda M elaborated, her face showed the kindness and worry, but her tone sounded sarcastic and narcissistic, as always.

    “Oh.” I mumbled before walking back to my seat.

    I sat at my seat, going over my script, reading the lines that were already highlighted, and the notes that were already written down in a neat hand that’s obviously not mine. And when Mr. Alexander enters the room and begins the lesson, I didn’t have to look around to know that Missy is not the only person who’s not in class today.

    The rest of the day was a blur, and my official first rehearsals for The Story of The Nutcracker went pretty well. What surprised me is that nobody (not even Mrs. Ward) didn’t seem to notice the lost look on my face whenever I got confused about the blocking. Which is kind of strange.

    It was after I got home, after dinner (I was glad to see that nothing seemed out of the ordinary with mom, dad, and Amber), after I finished my homework, and when it was late enough to be considered for bedtime, I began to break down.

    I collapsed on my bed, and released all of the tears that I’ve held back. As I cried, I felt as if I’m falling, but instead of crashing through water, I just fall into an endless abyss. I also felt my heart stop beating as I continued to fall into the eternal darkness. Only to never to come back to the surface, never to return to the real world.